Project Pollywog: 27 weeks
Today's post is brought to you by the letters A and G (for anxious and grumpy). Just fair warning.
So! Today marks the first day of the Third Trimester. Good bye relative comfort and having energy again. Good bye to being able to see my feet and reach them. Good bye riding my motorcycle. Good bye to still "having a ways to go."
Hello edema. Hello being tired all the time again. Hello increased back pain. Hello Braxton-Hicks Contractions. Hello Colostrom production and swollen breasts. Hello increased mood swings and crying fits. Hello Anxiety Attacks?! (What's that all about anyway?!) Hello driving on four wheels all the time, everywhere. Hello count down to baby. Hello birthing classes. Hello buying the big ticket items we've been putting off (like a carseat, the pushchair, and a breast pump). Hello pregnant waddle and unrelenting acid reflux.
But most importantly... in three months, Hello Baby!!! That's right. For those of you who need a reminder, our due date is 9 October- three months from today. Just a staggering 12 weeks to go after this one.
The Second Trimester Review:
The Second Trimester lived up quite well to my expectations and the reports from others of what I should expect. I did have more energy. I did not (Thank Gilroy!) have as much nausea- though some things will still trigger my gag reflex and worse. I got bigger and got stretch marks. However, I did not get, am not, as big as I expected to be at this point (and yes I realise there are three months to go).
The baby has been very active and very curious about outside influences throughout pretty much the whole thing. The baby, in it's ever increasing needs for space, has pushed up far enough that it feels like it takes up most of my abdomen. Yesterday, when my stomach growled the baby tried to poke at it (gotta get that sound!). Baby and squidgyfishlove made contact during this trimester, though it's still hit and miss as to when Stephen can feel the baby. But the baby is always trying to kick Stephen! (I told you it was smart.) Stephen has been making more of an effort to talk to the baby, or at least talk to me with his head next to baby so that it can become accustomed and comfortable with his voice.
The baby also discovered the feeder bar quite a while ago. I would get a good strong kick around 11:30 and suddenly be ridiculously hungry and so would eat, which made no difference, and usually ended up eating something else on top of it... and still being hungry. This also coincided with the weeks that suddenly seemed bigger. Extra hungry for a week, and then suddenly seem bigger. Go figure.
The baby started the second trimester at 4 inches and weighing less than 2 ounces, and is now Crown to Rump 9.5 inches (15.75 total inches) ish, and about 2.25 lbs! What a growth spurt! I suspect this has a lot to do with eating my lunch.
Some people have asked me about my food cravings. I would say that they were not too bad. The worst of it was around the transition from first to second trimester when I really had to have a certain thing and nothing else. Lately I've found myself wanting genres of nutrients. Potatos and corn have been high on the list- more starch. Tomatoe sauce in pizza form has been on the list- more potassium? and all sorts of other things in those I wouldn't normall get because I hate them. Though, largely, much to my dismay, I've mostly craved high fat foods around the times that growth spurts have happened... and lately, definitely liking the sweets.
One thing I do know is that I don't think I would have survived to this point without my good buddies Soy Milk and Rice Cheese (or Almond Cheese and the shopping trip may decide). When I'm need of quick, effective, and healthy sustainance to keep myself from gagging or what have you, a quick glass of soy milk will almost always save me from certain doom. Thank you, Soy Milk. You rock.
I have just reread my post on the first trimester wrap up and looking forward to the second trimester and things haven't changed a whole lot. I did get a pretty big break from a lot of the major anxiety and stress I was feeling once uni really did let out (and I did get decent marks, though not what I wanted). Things did improve for Stephen and I, though sometimes I still don't think he understands that I'm not as able to cope with things and lift things like I could before being pregnant, and that when I say I need to eat, I really do need to eat. He's probably the only person who doesn't treat me like I'm pregnant most of the time. And, yes, there has still been a lot of feeling alone in this last month. I know he's trying. He's definitely warming up to the idea that there is a baby in me and that he is Dad. I even got him to try on the baby carrier thing (the chest carrier)... and that was fab. I can't wait to see him when he meets his child. That, more than anything, makes me tear up when I picture it. I hope it's wonderful.
Looking Ahead to the Last Trimester
We're in the final leg of this whole pregnancy adventure and then into the starting gate of parenthood. Sometimes it seems so natural and other times it's nearly impossible to wrap my head around.
Last night I was looking in the mirror and checking out my changing profile. I suddenly remembered standing there months and months ago, trying to imagine being pregnant and wanting it so badly. Now, here we are, and it's almost over. Our baby will, I hope, be in our arms before we know it. It is times like that where I feel the need to slam on the breaks and of course cannot. It's so precious to be able to feel the baby moving inside of me. I can't wait to hold it, but I don't want to miss a second of this either. It may never happen again.
The inevitable truth, of course, is that soon the baby will not be inside of me anymore. If all goes well, and it's healthy, lives, then we will need to care for it. No more auto-pilot. I really hope I'll be up for the task. I think I'm pretty good with babies, but I've never had one of my own before. I've nannied my cousins but this is different. I'm going to be the primary caregiver to this tiny, new, helpless little life. I hope I will be able to provide enough nourishment, and comfort it. I hope I'll be a good mother. It's so amazing to have such an overwhelming love for something I've never seen, for a person I haven't fully met. I want to do all I can to protect and love it. I know that sometimes I get a little overwhelmed and probably overzealous about it, but I can't imagine doing any less. I just want to do a good job. I want the baby to know that we're already proud of it and how curious it is. I'm still terrified that when it is born I'll find out I did something wrong and have damaged it forever, but I hope not. I hope I've done well enough even now.
I am still constantly asked about the sex of the baby. "Do you know what you're having?" I usually reply to strangers, "Yes! A baby!" It's going to be a surprise and I'm excited about that. Honestly, I'm also hoping, even if it does turn out to be a girl, that everyone else not knowing the sex will save us from a mountain of pink at the baby shower. For me, the only issue I have with not nowing is that I don't know what to call the baby. So we call it Baby, or Thumper, and sometimes it is referred to as the 'the creature' or when it eats my lunch 'the parasite.' It's hard knowing how much easier it is to imagine a little girl, our little Ellie. But I still somewhat expect that we'll find out it's a boy. Just because. Either way, I'm happy to have a baby. Boy or Girl, Ellie or Ewan (which is my favourite), it will be loved just as much.
We need to sign up for birthing classes, well, pretty much last week. Taking those will likely feel silly, but I expect will somehow make the labour part more tangible. I've started to get some anxiety about labour. I'm worried that I won't be prepared, and sometimes I'm not worried at all. I really want to take the Bradley Method classes, which of course are twice the cost of everything else but also so much more in depth. I see the classes as a chance for Stephen and I to get closer, to bond more, for me to really feel like he's there and will be there with me to go through this. They're also geared towards natural childbirth, as opposed to the hospital classes, local enough and timed appropriately to be convenient, unlike the next best thing, and only a couple hours per session allowing us to take it in better and for Stephen to feel less trapped. But they're expensive. They also start next week. We need to make a decision very quickly, and I'm feeling pretty powerless on that one. I'm hoping something will work out.
This post is turning out so much less eloquently than I was hoping for, and much lengthier. I think I'll leave you with that for now.
For those interested and who have asked, some information to plan by:
Baby Shower: Save the Date
Hosted by redcanoe, Lisa Hall who is flying in from California for the event (hence the early planning).
When: 15 Sept, 2007 (probably early-mid afternoon)
Where: Our home in Arlington
What: We're having a co-ed style baby shower and bbq (Stephen requests that the guys have somewhere to escape the cute if need be).
Things to consider:
Registries:
We will be using cloth diapers via Baby Diaper Service (www.seattlediaper.com). We would appreciate gift certicates which are avaiable by calling them. We are already signed up (our first delivery is 22 Sept!) so you just need to give them my name if you would like to contribute that way.
Things we need and want, Online shopping: Amazon.com Registry. They have some cloth diapering associated items as well as the natural detergent that we use. There are also some fun things on there for now.
Things we want: Target. Unfortunately Target doesn't have much of anything we need, other than a couple of things, but they do have some fun toys and other cute things- and are local for people around here. We haven't actually gone to the store and blooped anything yet- so there are only a few things on the registry at the moment.
As always, I tend to change, add, and remove things on these fairly often so please check back around the beginning of September. But for those of you who ask me all the time, there you go.
So! Today marks the first day of the Third Trimester. Good bye relative comfort and having energy again. Good bye to being able to see my feet and reach them. Good bye riding my motorcycle. Good bye to still "having a ways to go."
Hello edema. Hello being tired all the time again. Hello increased back pain. Hello Braxton-Hicks Contractions. Hello Colostrom production and swollen breasts. Hello increased mood swings and crying fits. Hello Anxiety Attacks?! (What's that all about anyway?!) Hello driving on four wheels all the time, everywhere. Hello count down to baby. Hello birthing classes. Hello buying the big ticket items we've been putting off (like a carseat, the pushchair, and a breast pump). Hello pregnant waddle and unrelenting acid reflux.
But most importantly... in three months, Hello Baby!!! That's right. For those of you who need a reminder, our due date is 9 October- three months from today. Just a staggering 12 weeks to go after this one.
The Second Trimester Review:
The Second Trimester lived up quite well to my expectations and the reports from others of what I should expect. I did have more energy. I did not (Thank Gilroy!) have as much nausea- though some things will still trigger my gag reflex and worse. I got bigger and got stretch marks. However, I did not get, am not, as big as I expected to be at this point (and yes I realise there are three months to go).
The baby has been very active and very curious about outside influences throughout pretty much the whole thing. The baby, in it's ever increasing needs for space, has pushed up far enough that it feels like it takes up most of my abdomen. Yesterday, when my stomach growled the baby tried to poke at it (gotta get that sound!). Baby and squidgyfishlove made contact during this trimester, though it's still hit and miss as to when Stephen can feel the baby. But the baby is always trying to kick Stephen! (I told you it was smart.) Stephen has been making more of an effort to talk to the baby, or at least talk to me with his head next to baby so that it can become accustomed and comfortable with his voice.
The baby also discovered the feeder bar quite a while ago. I would get a good strong kick around 11:30 and suddenly be ridiculously hungry and so would eat, which made no difference, and usually ended up eating something else on top of it... and still being hungry. This also coincided with the weeks that suddenly seemed bigger. Extra hungry for a week, and then suddenly seem bigger. Go figure.
The baby started the second trimester at 4 inches and weighing less than 2 ounces, and is now Crown to Rump 9.5 inches (15.75 total inches) ish, and about 2.25 lbs! What a growth spurt! I suspect this has a lot to do with eating my lunch.
Some people have asked me about my food cravings. I would say that they were not too bad. The worst of it was around the transition from first to second trimester when I really had to have a certain thing and nothing else. Lately I've found myself wanting genres of nutrients. Potatos and corn have been high on the list- more starch. Tomatoe sauce in pizza form has been on the list- more potassium? and all sorts of other things in those I wouldn't normall get because I hate them. Though, largely, much to my dismay, I've mostly craved high fat foods around the times that growth spurts have happened... and lately, definitely liking the sweets.
One thing I do know is that I don't think I would have survived to this point without my good buddies Soy Milk and Rice Cheese (or Almond Cheese and the shopping trip may decide). When I'm need of quick, effective, and healthy sustainance to keep myself from gagging or what have you, a quick glass of soy milk will almost always save me from certain doom. Thank you, Soy Milk. You rock.
I have just reread my post on the first trimester wrap up and looking forward to the second trimester and things haven't changed a whole lot. I did get a pretty big break from a lot of the major anxiety and stress I was feeling once uni really did let out (and I did get decent marks, though not what I wanted). Things did improve for Stephen and I, though sometimes I still don't think he understands that I'm not as able to cope with things and lift things like I could before being pregnant, and that when I say I need to eat, I really do need to eat. He's probably the only person who doesn't treat me like I'm pregnant most of the time. And, yes, there has still been a lot of feeling alone in this last month. I know he's trying. He's definitely warming up to the idea that there is a baby in me and that he is Dad. I even got him to try on the baby carrier thing (the chest carrier)... and that was fab. I can't wait to see him when he meets his child. That, more than anything, makes me tear up when I picture it. I hope it's wonderful.
Looking Ahead to the Last Trimester
We're in the final leg of this whole pregnancy adventure and then into the starting gate of parenthood. Sometimes it seems so natural and other times it's nearly impossible to wrap my head around.
Last night I was looking in the mirror and checking out my changing profile. I suddenly remembered standing there months and months ago, trying to imagine being pregnant and wanting it so badly. Now, here we are, and it's almost over. Our baby will, I hope, be in our arms before we know it. It is times like that where I feel the need to slam on the breaks and of course cannot. It's so precious to be able to feel the baby moving inside of me. I can't wait to hold it, but I don't want to miss a second of this either. It may never happen again.
The inevitable truth, of course, is that soon the baby will not be inside of me anymore. If all goes well, and it's healthy, lives, then we will need to care for it. No more auto-pilot. I really hope I'll be up for the task. I think I'm pretty good with babies, but I've never had one of my own before. I've nannied my cousins but this is different. I'm going to be the primary caregiver to this tiny, new, helpless little life. I hope I will be able to provide enough nourishment, and comfort it. I hope I'll be a good mother. It's so amazing to have such an overwhelming love for something I've never seen, for a person I haven't fully met. I want to do all I can to protect and love it. I know that sometimes I get a little overwhelmed and probably overzealous about it, but I can't imagine doing any less. I just want to do a good job. I want the baby to know that we're already proud of it and how curious it is. I'm still terrified that when it is born I'll find out I did something wrong and have damaged it forever, but I hope not. I hope I've done well enough even now.
I am still constantly asked about the sex of the baby. "Do you know what you're having?" I usually reply to strangers, "Yes! A baby!" It's going to be a surprise and I'm excited about that. Honestly, I'm also hoping, even if it does turn out to be a girl, that everyone else not knowing the sex will save us from a mountain of pink at the baby shower. For me, the only issue I have with not nowing is that I don't know what to call the baby. So we call it Baby, or Thumper, and sometimes it is referred to as the 'the creature' or when it eats my lunch 'the parasite.' It's hard knowing how much easier it is to imagine a little girl, our little Ellie. But I still somewhat expect that we'll find out it's a boy. Just because. Either way, I'm happy to have a baby. Boy or Girl, Ellie or Ewan (which is my favourite), it will be loved just as much.
We need to sign up for birthing classes, well, pretty much last week. Taking those will likely feel silly, but I expect will somehow make the labour part more tangible. I've started to get some anxiety about labour. I'm worried that I won't be prepared, and sometimes I'm not worried at all. I really want to take the Bradley Method classes, which of course are twice the cost of everything else but also so much more in depth. I see the classes as a chance for Stephen and I to get closer, to bond more, for me to really feel like he's there and will be there with me to go through this. They're also geared towards natural childbirth, as opposed to the hospital classes, local enough and timed appropriately to be convenient, unlike the next best thing, and only a couple hours per session allowing us to take it in better and for Stephen to feel less trapped. But they're expensive. They also start next week. We need to make a decision very quickly, and I'm feeling pretty powerless on that one. I'm hoping something will work out.
This post is turning out so much less eloquently than I was hoping for, and much lengthier. I think I'll leave you with that for now.
For those interested and who have asked, some information to plan by:
Baby Shower: Save the Date
Hosted by redcanoe, Lisa Hall who is flying in from California for the event (hence the early planning).
When: 15 Sept, 2007 (probably early-mid afternoon)
Where: Our home in Arlington
What: We're having a co-ed style baby shower and bbq (Stephen requests that the guys have somewhere to escape the cute if need be).
Things to consider:
- We are planning to go pretty natural for this baby.
- We will be nursing.
- Our nursery theme is moons and stars in various middle blues, green and yellow.
- Stephen and Raine are both very sensitive to perfumes and fragrances.
- Raine is allergic to lavendar.
- We are cloth diapering.
Registries:
We will be using cloth diapers via Baby Diaper Service (www.seattlediaper.com). We would appreciate gift certicates which are avaiable by calling them. We are already signed up (our first delivery is 22 Sept!) so you just need to give them my name if you would like to contribute that way.
Things we need and want, Online shopping: Amazon.com Registry. They have some cloth diapering associated items as well as the natural detergent that we use. There are also some fun things on there for now.
Things we want: Target. Unfortunately Target doesn't have much of anything we need, other than a couple of things, but they do have some fun toys and other cute things- and are local for people around here. We haven't actually gone to the store and blooped anything yet- so there are only a few things on the registry at the moment.
As always, I tend to change, add, and remove things on these fairly often so please check back around the beginning of September. But for those of you who ask me all the time, there you go.